


A Tale of Two Elves

by Corrie71



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Bromance to Romance, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Co-workers, Companionable Snark, Drinking Games, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Fluffy Ending, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, From Angst to Fluff to Smut, I'm drowning in plot tribbles here, Jim's still in high school, Leo has a girlfriend in Paris and needs money to see her, Leo is a college student, M/M, Male Friendship, Modern Era, Same Age, Scotty is an angel, Swearing, They are mall elves, They are nearly the same age, Underage Drinking, Working in Santa's Village, santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-22
Updated: 2014-12-23
Packaged: 2018-02-28 16:35:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2739440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Corrie71/pseuds/Corrie71
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At the holiday season, both Jim and Leo need jobs and end up working at Santa's Village as mall elves...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

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	2. Chapter 2

“The court calls James Tiberius Kirk.” A pouty blonde kid in a black t-shirt, a fading bruise outlining one of his too-blue eyes, stepped forward to the witness stand, all cocky grace and defiant bravado. He stuck his hands in the back pockets of his worn jeans and gave the bench an insouciant glare. 

“Says here you put a car on top of the high school. Is that so?” Judge Christopher Pike peered over his reading glasses as he glanced up from the thick file in front of him. The kid shrugged and glanced away, a smile flirting with his generous mouth. “How’d you manage that little engineering feat, you and one Mr. Montgomery Scott, your partner in crime?” 

“Not hard if you know what you’re doing.” The boy rasped. 

“Where’d you get that shiner, son?”

“Not your son.” Pike waited and the kid finally answered, “My mother’s husband.”

“I see.” Pike looked back down at the file. “Are your parents here in court with you today?”

“No.”

“No, sir.” Pike corrected. 

“No sir.” The kid echoed, still managing to sound insubordinate. Pike glanced through the file. The kid would turn 18 in just a few weeks. If he didn’t straighten out, he’d be charged as an adult the next time. From his biographical info Pike knew the kid had gotten a raw deal in life. The father died in a motorcycle crash on the day James was born and the mother’d been in and out of rehab ever since. She’d been re-married nearly as often as she’d entered rehab and most of her husbands seemed to like to solve things with their fists. Still, the kid’s aptitude tests were off the charts, even if his grades were all over the board. From the hi-jinks in his file, he seemed more mischievous and attention seeking than a hardened criminal. 

“I’ve got two choices here. You can spend Christmas in juvie as the only genius level repeat offender in the midwest…” He trailed off and waited until the kid fixed those incredible blue eyes on him. “Or you can get a job. My clerk has the details. You make the choice. Either show up for the job at eight sharp on Saturday or show up for the lockup. Dismissed, son.”

* * *

Leonard McCoy detested Iowa. He hadn’t been warm since October, despite wearing more cold weather gear than an eskimo. Iowa just had too much space, too much sky, and way too much corn. The isolated campus of Starfleet University was miles from the nearest town and perpetually covered in snow of all awful things. However, they also had the best pre-med program in the country which was how he’d ended up in this godforsaken hellhole of a place.

While his girlfriend, the lovely Jocelyn, spent her junior year abroad in Paris, learning all sorts of interesting things and meeting fascinating new people in a cosmopolitan city, he was stuck here, in Snowville, USA. All he wanted for Christmas was to go to see her in the City of Lights. He hadn’t heard from her in a few days and was sure this was his punishment for not being able to come visit for the holidays. He just needed to convince his dad to loan him the money for the flight. Never mind that it was a nearly eleven hour plane ride and he hated to fly. He had to get to Joce somehow. Just to see her and hold her in his arms again. He missed her so much.

“But son, you need to come home for Christmas. Your mom and I miss you.” His father’s voice crackled through the cell phone. Yet another thing Leo loathed about Iowa: lousy cell phone coverage. 

“I’ve always wanted to see the Eiffel Tower. It’d be educational, Daddy. See the Louvre and all that.”

“I’m not giving you the money so you can go on a European vacation to see that girlfriend of yours.”

“You just don’t like Jocelyn.”

“I think you could do better than her, son, that’s all I’m saying.”

“Fine. I’ll get a job and pay for my own ticket. Thanks for nothing, Daddy.” Leo hung up and glared around at the overly cheerful local mall, crowded with shoppers. _Didn’t these people have anything better to do?_ Leo reflected and then decided that there was probably nothing better to do in Riverside, Iowa on a Saturday morning. Where was there to get a job in bumfuck Iowa? He wandered the overdecorated, overheated mall checking in at various stores who already had all the holiday help they required. 

After an hour with no luck, he found himself staring at Santa’s Village in the middle of the mall. Though he wasn’t fond of his college town, he had to concede they knew how to create a magical winter wonderland. A life-sized faux gingerbread house, decorated with fluffy cotton snow and lined with enormous sparkling gumdrops, nestled in the center of the display. Twinkling christmas lights dripped from the eaves and brightly colored stained glass windows shone onto a sparkling, glittery snowscape. An enormous glossy red sleigh sat to one side of the house with a very real looking Santa Claus seated on the plush velvet seat. He could have stepped off a Coca-Cola can. To the left, a long line of families zig-zagged through the lower level of the mall, waiting their turn for a festive holiday photo. 

Leo sighed and headed for the coffee shop across from Santa’s display. He could use some caffeine before he trudged through the rest of the mall seeking employment. Like any college kid, he rarely got a good night’s sleep. His roommate kept odd hours and liked to meditate or burn incense in the middle of the night. When Joce had been here last year, he’d mostly stayed in her room after he’d met her at the Freshman mixer. But this year, he was stuck with Gary and his hippy-dippy Californian ways. As he walked past Santa, a curvaceous redhead in a skimpy elf outfit smiled at him. He grinned back and she thrust a flyer into his hand. 

“Santa’s looking for elves. Must be good with kids. Flexible hours.” She winked and ran her fingers over his forearm.

“No thanks.” He might need a job but he wasn’t desperate enough to consign himself to the ninth circle of Christmas hell just yet. Leo tried to hand her back the flyer and step around her.

“It pays $15 an hour.”

Leo stopped and turned back. “Well, it’s better than nothing.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our two heroes meet on their first day as Santa's elves...

“Where is your costume, McCoy?” Spock, the humorless mall manager with the severe bowl cut greeted him when Leo reported for his first shift as an elf early on Sunday morning. 

“No one said anything…”

“I have it here.” The lovely redhead who’d given him the flyer the day before walked over holding a set of folded clothes. She handed them to Leo and extended her right hand. “I’m Gaila. You can change in the gingerbread house.”

Leo eyed the flimsy cardboard structure but, imagining seeing the Louvre, shrugged and headed inside. He stripped off his flannel shirt and henley and traded it for a leaf green coat with about a thousand buttons, trimmed with gold and fur at the collar and cuffs. Because the mall wasn’t overheated enough. After he struggled into that, he found yellow tights, curved shoes with bells on the toes, and a hat that matched the coat. He stuck his head out the door. “Miz Gaila, I think you might have forgotten my pants.”

“What a cute accent, Leo. Where are you from?” 

“Atlanta. And about the pants?”

“The yellow tights are the pants.” Leo ducked back into the dressing room and picked up the pants, rubbing the thin fabric with his fingertips. They were thicker than pantyhose, closer to the leggings Joce wore to do yoga than true tights. Still, he wasn’t thrilled with having to wear skintight, taxi-cab yellow leggings in the middle of a mall. Passerby would be able to guess his religion in these things. 

_Just think, Leo, when you’re enjoying croissants and cafe au lait in Paris, with Jocelyn smiling at you, elves will be a distant memory._ He’d calculated he’d need to work nearly full-time for the next four weeks to afford his ticket to Paris. Between his new job and finals, he’d obviously have to give up sleep. Resigned to his fate, he shucked his jeans and, after acrobatic maneuvers that nearly took out one of the faux stained glass windows, he managed to get into the tights. He slapped the shoes on his feet. They were surprisingly comfortable, nearly like slippers, even if they did jingle with each step. Already sweating, he stepped out into wonderland. 

An identically dressed blonde elf, just about his height, stood with his back to Leo, chatting with the two tech kids at the printer and computer tables. He’d met Nyota, the lovely photographer the night before, and gave her a nod as he pressed his hat to his sweaty head. Gaila gestured to his position at the head of the rope line. It wasn’t even eight thirty and people were already lined up. 

“I’m Jim. Jim Kirk.” The other elf charged over to stand next to him. Leo caught only the impression of merry blue eyes in a handsome face before the kid bounced over to grab a handful of candy canes. He stuffed some into Leo’s hand, a smile curving his lush mouth.

“McCoy. Leonard McCoy.”

“You might try smiling a bit. You know, merry and all.”

“Christmas is greed and disappointment wrapped in colored lights and tinsel.” Leo crossed his arms over his chest, the mini candy canes crunching as they shattered in his grip. 

Jim’s jaw dropped open. “You’re the grumpiest elf I’ve ever seen.” 

Leo rolled his eyes. Over the next several hours, he quickly learned his role—crowd control mixed with ferrying the next child over to Santa’s lap. Jim or Gaila usually took care of getting the child off Santa’s lap with a minimum of fuss and upselling the parents into ever expansive photo packages. _Why did anyone need dozens of copies of their kid screaming on the lap of a red-suited stranger?_ Nyota could coax a smile out of the most reluctant kids while Hikiru and Pavel—the tech wizards—kept the whole production line going. 

It wasn’t the worst job that Leo had ever held. Scrubbing out the dumpsters behind the Winn-Dixie took that prize. Jim kept up a steady stream of chatter, word games, and trivia to fill any spare moments. It wasn’t so awful. The time went by quickly and before Leo knew it, it was midday. 

“Santa takes a break in ten minutes. I’m starved. Didn’t have time for breakfast.” Jim said. His fellow elf was unfailingly chipper and cheerful, especially good with the horrified, reluctant toddlers. Leo also had to concede that he was a hard worker. His stomach gave a loud rumble, reminding Leo that his bowl of oatmeal and a banana had been a while ago. 

Just as they were about to shut the line, triplet toddler girls, dressed identically, entered the queue ropes with their parents. As they wended their way through the rope maze, the girls howled, in harmony, so loudly that it sounded like every smoke alarm in the mall went off at once.

“Fuck me.” Leo breathed, his ears ringing from the noise. 

“Well, maybe, if you buy me dinner first." Jim winked at him.

“You’re not my type, kid.” Leo muttered as he took one toddler from the harried father and stepped over toward Santa. 

“A guy?” Jim asked as he carried one of her sisters over.

“An extrovert.” Leo answered before heading out to take his break, grabbing his plain black backpack from a cunningly designed pile of faux presents on the way. He wandered up to the foot court, yanking his hat off his head and fumbling for his wallet in the pocket of his backpack. Faced with a choice of cardboard pizza, golden arches, and burgers, he headed for Burger Heaven. 

A short kid with an elven face stood behind the counter, dressed in as an angel complete with battered feathered wings and a drooping halo. He greeted Leo, his heavy Scottish accent making the words nearly unintelligible, “Welcome to Burger Heaven: Where Burgers Go to Die.”

“You’d think with all the cows around here, they’d at least be able to make a good burger." 

“You’d think that but no. Anyway, I don’t think the burger patties come from around here.” The boy shook his head sadly, his halo flopping around dangerously. Leo barked out a laugh and ordered a salad, taking the last booth in the corner and pulling out his textbook. He lost himself in memorizing all the bones in the human hand and picked at the dry chicken on his limp salad. Less than ten minutes later, Jim joined him in the booth, sitting carefully on the cracked vinyl of the seat across from him, dropping a sky blue tray piled high with burgers on top of Leo’s textbook.

Leo glanced around the empty restaurant. “What was the matter with the other booths?”

“You looked like you wanted company.” Jim unwrapped a burger and bit into it. It looked better than Leo’s wilting salad. 

“All those burgers for one person?”

“Nah. My buddy, Scotty, fixed me up.” Jim held a burger, encased in a white wrapper imprinted with cartoon clouds, out to him. “Want one?”

Leo glanced at his unappetizing salad and then took the burger. “Thanks, kid.”

“So, how’d you end up as an elf?” Jim asked as Leo took a bite.

“Same as you, I expect. Needed the money.” Leo said, surprised that the burger wasn’t half bad and polished his off in two bites. Jim handed him another with a smile, digging into a second one with relish. Leo felt a bit bad, taking Jim’s lunch but he had to have at least ten burgers on the tray. Not even someone with Jim’s manic energy level could put a dent in that pile. 

“You seem good with the kids.” Jim said. “Especially that one really scared little girl in the green dress.”

Leo remembered the kid Jim meant. She hadn’t screamed or cried, just stood in quiet, shaking terror in at the head of the queue. When he’d noticed how distressed she was, Leo knelt down next to her and spoke softly and directly, explaining the procedure and what was going to happen. He’d gotten her calmed down enough to sit next to Santa and walked her over, holding her hand the whole time. Though her mother hadn’t been happy that the child wouldn’t sit on Santa’s lap and that Leo ended up in the photo. 

“What do parents expect? Don’t talk to strangers, little Johnny. Don’t take candy from anyone, Mary Sue. And then, let me dress you up and drag you to this crowded, noisy mall and plop you on some red-suited strangers lap. Smile, sweetie! Parents are idiots.” Leo ranted, waving his half eaten burger around to make his point.

“Tell me how you really feel, Leo.” Jim laughed. “How’d you learn to be so good with kids? Lots of little brothers and sisters in the McCoy household?”

“I volunteered in the peds ward at the hospital back home. I’m thinking about becoming a pediatrician.” Leo blinked as the words came out of his mouth. He’d never told anyone that, not even Joce, and he’d just met Jim a few hours ago.

“Guess that explains the textbook, Bones.” Jim gestured to the open copy of Gray’s Anatomy in front of him, detailing the bones in the human hand. “Where’s home?”

“Atlanta.”

“Saving up to go home for a Georgian Christmas?” 

“No, Paris.”

“Joyuex Noel, mon novel ami.” Jim smiled and Leo stared at him. “It means Merry Christmas, my new friend in French. So, not going to France for the language then and probably not the culture either. You’re devouring Burger Heaven so probably not the food either. So, who’s the lucky guy or girl?”

“My girlfriend, Jocelyn. You speak French?”

“Oui. And Spanish and German too. I have an ear for languages and a talented tongue.” Jim winked and Leo scowled at him.

“I bet.” Leo muttered. “It’s almost time for Santa to pop back into his sleigh.”

“Is that an innuendo?” 

“Unbelievable.” Leo huffed out a laugh as they climbed out of the booth and headed back to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The “Guess his religion” line is an adaptation of a Benedict Cumberbatch quote. And the elf outfits are based on Will Ferrell’s outfit in the film, Elf.


	4. Chapter 4

“It was the worst of times, it was the worst of times.” Leo muttered as he took his place next to Jim at the head of the queue ropes the following Saturday morning. Leo’d worked two afternoon shifts during the week when he didn’t have class but Jim worked only the weekends and at night so they hadn’t shared a shift in a week. Though Leo liked all his co-workers, without Jim’s cheerful chatter and silly trivia games, the shifts at Santa’s Village were deadly dull. 

“Shouldn’t that be the best of times, Bones?”

“Not when we’re dressed as elves, kid.” Leo answered. “And would you please stop calling me that?”

“Bones it is, now and forever.” Jim grinned at him. “Okay, next Christmas trivia question, name all the seven dwarfs.”

“Sleepy, Dopey, Bashful, Grumpy, Sneezy, Happy, and Doc.” Leo rattled off. “And how is that Christmas trivia?”

“How did the grumpiest elf in the world know the seven dwarfs?” 

“I’m from Atlanta. We’d go to Disney all the time. You will never defeat me in Disney trivia.”

“Well, that sounds like a challenge I could get behind, except I know no other Disney trivia at all. Next question…”

“Wait, it’s my turn to ask a question. And this is a Christmas trivia question. Finish the quote: “Every time a bell rings…”

Jim looked at him blankly. “Am I supposed to know what that means?”

“It’s from the movie _It’s A Wonderful Life_?” Leo prompted. 

“Never saw it.” Jim shrugged as they moved toward their places at the head of the crowded queue.

“You never saw it? How can you miss it?” Leo gaped at him. “The quote is “Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings.”

“Oi! Is that a remark? That’s a bit rich coming from the guy in the tights.” The Scottish kid from Burger Heaven, wearing his white angel robe with the bedraggled wings but missing his halo, stood on the opposite side of the ropes on the mall side, glaring at Leo. When Leo raised an eyebrow at him, he laughed and handed Jim a bag. “Only kidding. Brought you all some cinnamon rolls and came by to harass my bonny Jimmy.” 

“Bones, this is Scotty, my usual partner in crime. And at least our uniforms don’t come with wings and a halo.”

“No but they are pretty skimpy. You got your tube socks down your pants again, Jimbo?” 

“That was one time.” Leo laughed as Jim glared at Scotty. He opened the bag. “You brought the little mini-ones with icing too. You’re the best, Scotty!” 

“Where is the lovely Miss Gaila?” Scotty glanced around hopefully as Jim extended the bag to Leo who declined.

“She works this afternoon.” Leo told him as Jim just shook his head, his mouth too full of cinnamon rolls to answer.

“She’s never going to go out with you, Scotty.” Jim said.

“An angel can only dream.”

“Oh brother.” Leo rolled his eyes. 

“Don’t mind him, Scotty. He’s cranky because his pretend girlfriend is in Paris.”

“Pretend?” Leo demanded as Scotty waved and headed in the direction of the escalators, raising his angel robe to his knees as he charged up the stairs two at at time, glitter flaking off his wings in a trail behind him.

“I’ve never seen a pic or any proof that Jessica exists so…” Jim shrugged. 

Leo pulled out his smartphone and queued up a pic of Jocelyn with the Eiffel Tower behind her. Jim peered at it and shrugged. “It’s a nice photograph but it doesn’t prove you know this Julia chick.”

“It’s Jocelyn.” Bones flipped to a photo of them taken last May on the quad. They sat next to each other, under a cherry tree in full bloom, as the blossoms cascaded around them. He sat with his arm around her, a beaming smile on his face, her back pressed to his front. He showed it to Jim.

“That doesn’t look like a recent shot. Your hair was different and…”

“It was in May. Last time I saw her.”

“You haven’t seen this chick since May?” 

“Well, I went home to Atlanta for the summer and she went home to Boston. She flew to Paris from there so…”

“And neither of you ever drove all night to see each other? Meet in the middle or something? There are flights from Atlanta to Boston and vice versa too. I thought you were madly in love.” Leo shook his head. He’d suggested those very ideas to Jocelyn several times but she’d never been able to make it work with her schedule. “If I had a boyfriend as hot as you, I’d drive all night to see him. Oh, here comes Santa."

Much like the prior weekend, working with Jim made the shift fly by. They were steadily busy, but not so busy that they didn’t have a chance to chat more or less constantly. When break time rolled around, Leo was right in the middle of a rant about the endless loop of Christmas music. 

“You’re in Santa’s Village. What should we play instead? Hard rock?” Jim cut in over him.

“It’s just these miserable songs on a loop. I mean, how many times have we heard the stupid reindeer song?”

“Rudolph is a classic for a reason, man. What kind of music do you like?” Jim demanded as Leo grabbed his backpack and they headed towards Burger Heaven by unspoken agreement. “I bet you like grunge rock. Let’s set our whining and complaining to music…”

“Jimbo! Bones! Want to try our chicken combo today?” Scotty greeted them when they entered Burger Heaven and continued sotto voice, “You really don’t.”

“It’s Leo.” When Scotty looked confused, Leo continued, “My name is not Bones. It’s Leo.”

“Yeah, Scotty, only I call him Bones.” Jim smiled and Leo rolled his eyes. Looked like he was stuck with that nickname. 

“Fine, Leo, do you want to try our chicken combo today?” Scotty asked while vigorously shaking his head no. “I’ll just get you guys some burgers, k?” 

Leo headed over to their booth while Jim grabbed drinks for both of them. He squished into Leo side of the booth. “What are you doin’?”

“The cracked vinyl is very uncomfortable in these tights.” Jim put his feet up on the booth across from them, forcing Leo to press against the wall instead of pressing against Jim. He picked up Leo’s textbook and flipped through it as Scotty dumped a tray of burgers and fries on the table and left with a grunt. “Organic chem, huh?”

“Yeah, I’m praying I pull a passing grade.”

“You’ll ace it. That stuff is so easy.”

“Easy?” Leo looked at him incredulously as Jim bit into his cheeseburger. “What do you know about organic chemistry?”

“I took the class at Starfleet University last year.” Jim shrugged. “You know, gifted and talented and all that. I’ve got enough credits to be halfway through my freshman year of college, assuming I ever manage to graduate high school.”

“Certified genius, are you?” 

“And you are too, unless I miss my guess. Only 18 last August and already a sophomore. You must have graduated with some college credits too.” Jim said, as he swiped a fry from Leo’s pile.

“I graduated high school a year early. Couldn’t wait to get away from those idiots. I’ll actually qualify as a junior next semester.” Leo answered. “And how do you know I turned 18 in August?”

“Might have peeked at your application, Leonard Horatio.” Leo dropped his crimson face into his hands. “It’s okay. I have an awful middle name too.”

“I don’t suppose you’ll tell me what it is?”

Jim smiled wolfishly at him and shook his head. Leo suddenly became very aware of the press of Jim’s warm thigh against his own and how close they were sitting in the booth. Every time Jim moved to grab a fry or take a bite, his shoulder brushed against Leo. He smelled of citrus and pine and some other spicy scent that might be unique to Jim. His heart rate picked up and he glanced into Jim’s bright blue eyes and swallowed hard. He might be in real trouble here. 

“If you don’t tell me your middle name, I’m gonna have to make one up for you, Jameson.”

“It’s just James. I’ll give you a hint. It’s an ancient Roman name.”

“Caligula!” Bones guessed and Jim burst out laughing. He just shook his head as they headed back to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The opening lines (the Dickens parody) as well as the closing lines (the name guessing game) were from my wonderful beta, WeWillSpockYou.


	5. Chapter 5

“When’s the exam?” On Sunday, both Jim and Leo worked a full shift, responsible for Santa’s Village from opening until closing which took time that Leo desperately needed to study. During their on-going chat, Jim quizzed him on organic chemistry equations, from memory. 

“Friday. It’s my last one. All my other classes, I feel ready for but this one…I’m nervous.” Leo admitted to Jim and then blinked. He wasn’t easily given to confidences, not being the chatty type. Something about this blue-eyed devil made him open up though. 

“You know it cold. You got this, man. If you need help studying during the week…”

“James Tiberius Kirk, if I recall correctly.” Jim whirled around, setting all the bells on his costume to jingling, to greet a distinguished man in an immaculately cut dark gray coat. He stood on the other side of the rope line, holding the hand of an adorable little girl with dark pigtails. 

“Tiberius?” Leo repeated with a wide grin as Jim said, “Judge Pike?”

“How do you like your new job, son?”

“Better than the lockup.” Jim shrugged and smiled down at the little girl, offering her a candy cane. She reached out a hand to take it and then glanced up at her daddy for reassurance. He smiled down at her and nodded. “And who is this little one?”

“My daughter, Heather. It’s good to see you doing so well.” The judge glanced over at Leo before looking back at Jim. “Where’s your partner in crime?”

“He took the opportunity at Burger Heaven instead. Didn’t think he could handle the tights.” 

The judge chuckled, his kind blue eyes twinkling. “I see. Well, only a few more weeks and your duty to society is done. Stay out of trouble, son. Merry Christmas.” Pike stole a candy cane out of Jim’s hand and let his daughter tug him toward the toy store. 

“You’re friends with a judge?”

Jim shrugged. “Last time I got hauled in front of him, he gave me a choice. A job or jail. I picked the elf tights.”

“Why were you hauled in front of a judge, Jim?” Leo asked, quietly, watching his face.

“That time? Scotty and I put a car on the roof of the school. Oil leaked through the roof and ruined part of the chemistry lab so the damages were pretty big. Still, worth it to see the look on the Principal Dallas’ face. We are not the best of friends.”

“How’d you get a car up there?”

“Piece by piece. It’s not too heavy if you take the engine out and we rigged up a pulley…” 

“Why would you put a car on the roof of the school?” Leo crossed his arms over his chest. Though he may have graduated high school early, he’d seen his share of senior pranks and even been the butt of several of them. But he’d never understood it. 

“It’s fun. The time before that, we’d gone cow tipping at Halloween and…”

“You’re a genius and you waste your time…”

“It’s fun!” Jim said. “I imagine college is even more fun.”

“You imagine wrong. It’s a lot of hard work…”

“You’re doing it wrong. It’s supposed to be fun! Frat parties…”

“You’ll find out differently when you get there, I suppose.”

“I’m not going to college. I’m done with school.” 

“You’re way too smart for that, kid.”

“Whatever.” Jim rolled his eyes and scowled. 

* * * 

Due to a mild snowstorm (which back home in Atlanta would have closed school for three days), the Sunday afternoon crowds were lighter than usual. The mall cleared out completely by five. After closing, the rest of the team departed quickly, leaving Jim and Leo with the clean up chores. As it added another hour to his work schedule and more money towards his ticket to Paris, Leo didn’t mind so much hanging out with Jim. Since their visit from Judge Pike, Jim’d been quiet and Leo found that he missed his constant chatter and their friendly banter.

“I’ll vacuum if you polish the sleigh.” Jim offered.

“Polish the sleigh? Is that some sort of juvenile dick joke?”

“It’s always the quiet ones!” Jim burst out laughing, as he tossed Leo a can of Pledge and a rag. “No, the kids get their little fingerprints all over it so…Gotta keep Santa’s sleigh shiny. That’s not a metaphor but it could be.”

“Goofball.” Leo smiled as Jim waggled his eyebrows at him. He headed over to the sleigh. He sprayed the lemon scented polish on the glossy red enamel and got to work. When his text alert went off, he glanced over to check on Jim. His friend vacuumed, waggling his hips and pretending to dance. As Leo watched, transfixed by that perfect round bottom, Jim bent over to grab a broken candy cane off the floor. Good God almighty, that should be illegal.

What was he doing ogling Jim? He had a girlfriend, even if he hadn’t heard back from her in a while. Leo shook his head to clear it as he thumbed open his phone and saw a text from Joce. Finally. “Hi sweetie. Hope your new job is going well. Talk soon.”

Leo smiled. When Joce first got to Paris, they’d communicated often via Skype chats but, she quickly found that impractical with the seven hour time difference. Now, they mostly communicated via short texts. He couldn’t wait to see her and talk to her and hold her again. She was beautiful, though Leo found himself not totally able to remember what she looked like or little details like what she smelled like. It probably wasn’t something spicy and citrusy, like Jim. Jocelyn felt warm and soft in his arms, not like Jim’s hard, sculpted body would. Not that he’d ever find out. 

After they finished the closing checklist, he and Jim changed out of their uniforms in the tight confines of the gingerbread house. Inside, it was tiny and cramped and probably not big enough for two people. Jim possessed no modesty at all, stripping out of his uniform and wiggling into his clothes, still chattering away. Resolutely, Leo tried not to look at the flat plane of Jim’s stomach, with its rigidly defined muscles or the dusting of freckles across his golden shoulders. He shut his eyes and tried to focus on Jocelyn’s lovely cinnamon colored hair and whiskey colored eyes but instead, too blue eyes and a pouty mouth kept intruding on his thoughts. 

They exited the mall into the darkened, deserted parking lot and Leo headed for his snow covered car. After he let the engine warm and the windshield clear, he noticed a slight figure, trundling along the snow covered sidewalk toward the main road. Jim couldn’t be walking home alone in the snow, could he? As he watched, the figure made a snowball and tossed it into the air, knocking snow off the parking signs. Yep, that was him. 

He pulled up next to him and rolled down the window. “Get in, kid.”

Jim flashed him a dazzling smile causing his pulse to kick up a notch higher. “My hero.”

Jim directed him to a part of town he’d never been in before. Here the houses were small, nestled close together, on tiny lots. Most were fiercely kept up, with new coats of paint and neat yards. As they turned onto Enterprise Street, every house on the block blazed with Christmas lights, warm and merry and bright. 

“Which one of these festive monstrosities is yours?” No doubt Jim would insist on the brightest light display on the block. 

Jim waved to the only dark one, a small, dinghy Craftsman style bungalow that needed a new coat of paint. Leo stopped in front of it and raised his eyebrows. The house appeared deserted and was totally undecorated for Christmas, without even single wreath or bulb. 

“Where are your folks?”

“My mom’s away a lot and her husband…” Leo glanced over, noting that Jim did not say my stepfather. “He’s probably already passed out, forgot to turn the lights on.”

“Wow. That sounds miserable.” Leo said, simply.

Jim shrugged, a jerky movement, in contrast to his usual grace. “Just a few more months until I’m legal and I can blow this popsicle stand.”

“How old are you anyway?” Leo’d often wondered.

“I’ll turn 18 in March. Probably stick around to graduate high school in June, assuming I don’t get kicked out first. And then Riverside, Iowa will never see me again.”

Leo bit his lip and glanced away. Before he could overthink it, Leo blurted, “Do you want to stay at the dorm with me? My roommate’s already gone home for the holidays.”

“That’s ok, Bones. Maybe another time.” Jim hopped out of the car and with a cheery wave headed up the walk. The lights from the surrounding houses lit his bright hair like a beacon and Leo waited until he was inside before driving off, wondering about the hidden depths in his new friend.


	6. Chapter 6

The following Friday, after his organic chemistry exam where he thought of Jim every time he used an equation, Leo went back to his dorm and fell into bed. He slept the clock around and then, after a midnight snack of cereal, went back to sleep. Normally, if he’d been heading home to Christmas in Georgia, he’d have been home by now. He pushed away thoughts of Mama and Daddy, the perfectly decorated farmhouse, warm and welcoming for the holidays, nestled among the rolling Georgian hills. 

In just a few days, he would be in Paris to celebrate the holiday, in the arms of his beautiful girlfriend. Hopefully, he’d hear from Joce soon as she’d yet to respond to his email about his travel arrangements so he could book his flight. He wanted to take the Christmas Eve Eve flight—as he’d called it as a child—so he’d be there for Christmas Eve with her. He imagined walking with her near the Seine and kissing in front of the Eiffel Tower, seeing all the sites she used to write him about, meeting all her new friends. And if his fantasy insisted on including a blonde guy instead of a dark haired girl, Leo chalked it up to stress and exhaustion. He wondered why he didn’t feel quite as excited to go as he had at first. Maybe it was the long delay in their communications. He knew she was also undergoing finals so he’d hear from her soon, he was sure.

On Saturday, he got up and enjoyed having the dormitory nearly to himself. He took a long shower and, as he took himself in hand, if he fell into a fantasy about too blue eyes and a luscious mouth, well, that was in the privacy of his own head. Just because he was attracted to Jim didn’t mean anything at all. He’d learned as much in his psychology class. When he saw Jim an hour later at work, heat rushed up his face as he recalled his shower fantasy in technicolor detail. Quickly, he turned his thoughts to organic chemistry before he earned that stupid nickname Jim bestowed on him, visible to everyone in these skimpy tights. 

“Leo, rumor around the mall is that you’re a college lad.” Scotty greeted him, appearing like a wraith on the far side off the ropes. The Scottish kid carried his wings and halo under one arm and his balled-up angel robe under the other, shifting from foot to foot like he couldn’t quite stay still. 

“I’m a sophomore at Starfleet. Why?”

“So, you might have some intel on this end of finals party that I’ve been hearing about. It seems that our lovely Miss Nyota and her boyfriend are going, with my elven angel, the gorgeous Gaila. Hook me up on the details.”

“Bones is way too much of a straight arrow to know anything about a post-finals party.” Jim chimed in. 

“As it happens, I got invited to that party the other day. But, unfortunately for you two, the invitation did not include infants.” 

Jim looked up from the candy cane container he’d been refilling, his eyes bright with interest, “You going?”

“Doubt it.” Leo stretched and, pulling off his hat, rubbed his hands through his hair. “It’s not really my thing and after studying all week and working here, I’m beat.”

“You talk him into it, Jimbo. I’m off!” Scotty dashed upstairs for his shift. 

“You can sleep when you’re dead. You’re only young once. Come to the party, Bones.” Jim said as he took his place next to him at the head of the queue.

“Maybe, we’ll see if I get to take a nap.” 

“A nap? You’re eighteen, not eighty!” 

“I got better things to do than watch you embarrass yourself at a frat party. I’m busy.” 

Jim badgered him most of the morning about going to the party that night. On break, as they settled into their customary booth at Burger Heaven, squashed together on the bench seat, Jim asked about the organic chemistry final.

“Thank you again for all your help, Jim. Practicing with you helped me remember the equations.” Leo didn’t say that he’d heard Jim’s voice as he’d filled it out. They both put their feet up on the opposite bench, pressing their thighs together. Leo tugged his coat down over his lap as surreptitiously as possible. 

“Let me know how you did.”

“We don’t find out grades until next semester.”

“I know.” Jim crooked a smile at him and Leo’s heart sped up. Did that mean Jim wanted to see him after their jobs at Santa’s Village were over? And why did that give him a warm, glowing feeling in his chest? 

“Do you realize how unacceptable this is? Could you not come a wee bit sooner? I know exactly what’s going on here. Punishment, isn’t it? Ongoing.” Scotty threw a tray of burgers in front of Jim before glaring down at them both.

Bewildered, Leo looked to Jim who sighed. “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you about me and Gaila sooner.”

“What about you and Gaila?” Leo said, his heart suddenly knocking against his chest as he straightened and tried to wiggle away from Jim’s warm side. There was no where for him to go in the tiny booth though. _Was Jim dating Gaila? And what did it matter anyway? He had Jocelyn, didn’t he?_

“Scotty feels that I’m standing in his way. I keep telling him that I’m not the problem here. She’s just not interested in a wee Scottish angel.” Jim winked at Leo.

“Who you calling wee?” The Scottish boy howled. “I am talkin’ about the details. The real party details. But you’re here now. So spill it.” Scotty crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Leo who simply gaped up at him. “And don’t you share those burgers with him, Jimbo, until he tells us.”

“How is this my life?” Leo asked, fumbling in his backpack before handing Scotty a neon orange flyer with the party details.

“Now that’s more like it.” Scotty beamed at him. “Jim said you were alright. I’ll go get you a sundae.”

Jim handed him a burger. Leo took a quick bite before fishing a glossy blue folder emblazoned with stars on it out of his backpack and handing it to Jim. “I brought you some information about applying to Starfleet. They have a great engineering program…” Leo trailed off as Jim took the glossy folder and opened it. Leo couldn’t quite interpret the expression on his face but pressed on. “I didn’t want you to miss the application deadline if you're interested. You saved my ass in organic chem and wanted to repay the favor. My professor didn't explain this stuff half as well as you did.” 

“I can’t afford Starfleet University, even if I wanted to endure another four years of school.”

“There are scholarships, Jim. I’ll help you apply, if you want me to. Or it doesn’t have to be Starfleet…there are lots of great schools.”

“I like Starfleet. I have friends there.” Jim locked his blue eyes on Leo’s face and he shivered at all that intensity being directed at him. Leo tried to suck a breath into his constricted lungs just as Scotty showed back up with an enormous sundae that he plopped between them. 

“Eat up, boys, you’re going to need all your strength for tonight.” Scotty scampered away, rubbing his palms together with glee.

“I don’t really eat sweets…” Leo began and glanced over just in time to see Jim licking chocolate sauce off his lower lip. He swallowed hard and picked up a spoon. After all, didn’t everyone deserve a treat once in a while?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to admit that this one made me laugh: http://sgtwhiskersnhappytoaster.tumblr.com/post/105235704600/merry-christmas-fellow-trekkies


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our two favorite elves are off to a college party and even share their first kiss...

Both Jim and Bones pulled a double shift that Saturday and Gaila even had to be called in to help out. They were slammed with every child in the tri-county area needing to have a last minute conference with the big guy in red. After closing, when Santa tottered off for the night and Leo finished changing in the gingerbread house, he stepped outside to find that Spock brought them all Chinese food, since they’d missed dinner. They all ate together, sprawled out across tables in the deserted food court, joined by Scotty mid-way through when his Burger Heaven shift was complete. It was strange to be in the mall after closing, when it was quiet and shadowy, without the noise and bustle of the Christmas crowds and endless muzak. 

“I didn’t know Nyota and Spock were…” Bones whispered to Jim.

“I know. It’s weird. Don’t know what she sees in him. She could have me.” Jim grinned.

“Nyota would never go out with you, man. And Spock’d strangle you if she did.” Hikiru put in with a laugh as he took Pavel’s hand. “She wouldn’t even tell you her first name for a week.” 

As they ate, they chatted and joked. Leo glanced around, wondering if this was what it was like to have friends. He’d had little time for friends as he rushed through high school and once he’d met Jocelyn he’d pretty much been absorbed into her circle of friends rather than bother with making his own, though most were either off with her on her exchange student adventure or ignored him without her here. He just didn’t have the skills to easily make friends the way Jim did. Jim was absolutely at the center of this little group, as though they were all drawn together by his gravitational force. The wicked sense of humor, fierce intelligence, movie star good looks, and endless charm probably didn’t hurt either. Jim was the whole package. 

After they finished eating, they lingered a bit, chatting of this and that. Leo relaxed into just hanging out with a group, no finals or schoolwork to worry about at the moment. Nyota interrupted his thoughts, “When do you leave for Paris, Leo?” 

“Day after tomorrow, right after my shift. I’ll be there for Christmas Eve.”

“Your girlfriend must be excited to see you.” Gaila put in and Bones shrugged. He still hadn’t heard from her. 

“I guess so. We haven’t had the chance to talk much since I got this job.” Jim glanced over at him, his bright blue eyes alight with interest. “No doubt she’s really busy with finals.”

“What are your plans while you’re there? You must go to the…” They chatted about Paris as Nyota had been there with her parents two years ago. Leo realized he hadn’t done much to prepare for this trip at all, beyond thinking of seeing his girlfriend again. When he’d decided to go, he hadn’t realized how much he’d miss back home, like spending Christmas with his own family and time with his own friends. 

“So, you gonna come to this party with us or not?” Jim asked as he stood, his hands on the back of his chair, temptation incarnate. He looked different in his street clothes, worn, tight jeans, topped with a black t-shirt over a long sleeved white shirt. And as Leo looked at him, he thought of going back to his lonely dorm room versus spending more time with Jim and his new friends. He didn’t expect Joce to keep herself from new experiences. Why should things be different for him? What could be the harm in going to a noisy, crowded frat party? It wasn’t like he was going to hook up with anyone. He nodded and stood. “Let’s go.” 

* * *

Gaila and Scotty piled into the backseat of Bones’ car, chattering to each other and Jim took the front seat, giving not-so-helpful directions all the way there. When they couldn’t find a close space on Greek row, Bones dropped off Gaila and Scotty. Jim insisted on staying with him. Leo noted with amusement that Scotty and Gaila were already holding hands when they dashed into the loud party. 

Together, Jim and Leo walked across the deserted campus, snow crunching under their boots, the cold night air stinging their exposed faces. Midway across the deserted quad, Jim stopped him with a hand to his shoulder, pointing out Orion’s belt in the velvety night sky, his breath warm against Leo’s ear as he murmured the names of the stars. Leo shivered and told himself it was from the cold as they trudged on. 

They heard the party before they saw it. The thrumming bass beat of the music pounded through his feet, so loud Leo felt it in his molars by the time they climbed the steps of the frat house and walked in. Chaos reigned inside the packed, dimly lit house. 

As they entered, a bikini-clad sorority sister handed Jim a fistful of jello shots from Christmas tree shaped display of stacked containers of colorful gelatin. Jim instantly downed one, made a face, and put the others off to the side. Leo could only smile at him. Jim then grabbed a red solo cup and took a generous swig. Jim’s face went red before he spat it onto the floor. 

“Not a fan of trash can punch, huh?” Leo asked and then laughed at the horrified expression on Jim’s face. “Everything you imagined it would be?” 

“I may throw up on you.” Jim coughed, tears streaming out of the corners of his eyes, as he hastily put the still overflowing cup on an end table. 

After transversing the too-loud party, they eventually wandered into the kitchen to find Scotty and Gaila standing amid a group of kids clustered around the kitchen island, a wobbly wine bottle in the center. Jim wiggled into a spot at the end of the island, pulling Leo by the forearm to stand next to him. 

“They are not seriously playing spin the bottle, are they?” 

“Leo, your turn!” Scotty cried but Leo just crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “Jimbo, you go.”

Jim spun the bottle and Leo watched as the counter light flashed on the glossy dark bottle as it spun. Someone jostled behind them, causing Leo to have to squeeze closer to Jim at the crowded counter. Leo caught the citrus and pine scent of Jim. Jim smiled at him, his blue eyes bright and sparkling, as the bottle wavered to a halt.

“You have the devil’s own luck, Jimbo. Never seen anything like it.” Scotty said as Leo glanced down at the bottle that pointed directly at him. Leo put his hands up and started to protest that he wasn’t playing when Jim lurched forward and kissed him, his mouth warm and soft and inviting against Leo’s lips. Leo wanted to sink into the kiss, to wrap his arms around Jim and claim that lush mouth for his own. Before he did something he’d very much regret, Leo jerked back, tearing his mouth from Jim’s, wide-eyed, his pulse pounding erratically in his wrists and neck. Jim’s eyes met his, reflecting the same deep yearning he felt. 

Without a word, Leo turned and headed outside, sucking in the cold night air to clear his head. He had a girlfriend, someone he’d promised to be faithful to while she was gone, and no matter how attracted he might be to Jim, he’d honor his promise to Jocelyn first. Behind him, Jim called his name and stumbled down the steps after him, Gaila and Scotty giggling behind. 

“Enjoying yourselves? Your first big frat party everything you thought it would be?” Leo directed at Gaila and Scotty, resolutely not looking at Jim, and proud that his voice only wavered once. 

“Not really. It’s kinda…boring.” Gaila wrinkled her nose as Scotty nodded beside her. Leo barked out a laugh. He’d had much the same reaction upon attending his own, eagerly anticipated frat party last year.

“I thought it’d be all cool but it’s just a bunch of drunk people slobbering all over each other and acting stupid.” Jim put in though Leo still didn’t look at him. 

“My wee grammie used to tell me what was fun for other people isn’t fun for everyone.” Scotty shrugged and then tossed his arm over Gaila’s shoulders. Leo bit his lip not to smile at the clumsy awkwardness of the move and exchanged a quick glance with Jim. Thankfully, their own awkward moment after their kiss seemed to have passed. _It was just a stupid game, Leo. Didn’t mean anything._

“I’m just too much of a homebody to enjoy a big party like this.”

“So what’s your style then?” Jim said, his voice low and raspy. “Tell me what you do for fun, Bones.”

“I don’t know. Read a book, watch a movie, eat pizza…”

“That sounds great.” Jim smiled and Leo’s heart did a funny sort of lurch in his chest. He hadn’t felt that since the first time Joss smiled at him. “You want to catch a movie?”

“Where? There’s nothing open in Riverside at midnight on a Saturday.”

“We could go back to your room. Order pizza” Jim suggested.

“Okay then, let’s go.” Bones nodded.


	8. Chapter 8

“So tell me more about how you three know each other?” Leo asked after they settled in at his dorm room and ordered a pizza. The tiny dorm room wasn’t really built for entertaining so they sat on the floor between the beds, Gaila and Scotty leaning up against his roommate’s bed and Jim and Leo leaning against his own bunk. Jim flipped an old Christmas movie on Leo’s tiny television though none of them paid any attention to it. 

“Scotty and I met on our first day of high school. I got my first detention because I was late to class. As he was also tardy, we served together.”

“Aye, our first detention together but it wouldn’t be our last, right, Jimbo?” He and Scotty fist-bumped over the empty space, laughing. 

“And you’re not from here originally…?”

“What gave it away?” Scotty laughed. “No, Dad moved us here about four years ago now. He’s a visiting professor here, actually.”

“Your dad is Professor Scott? The head of the pre-med program?” Leo’s jaw dropped. He’d been trying to get into Simon Scott’s senior seminar for ages. 

“Aye, that’s the one.” Scotty nodded. 

“Can you introduce me to him?” 

“Aye. If you’d like.” Scotty shrugged. When Leo’d been wandering the mall desperate for a job, he’d never have imagined he’d find a whole group of friends waiting for him in Santa’s Village. 

“Did you meet these two infants at work or at school, Miz Gaila?” Leo asked, thinking of Jim and Scotty’s brief argument that Jim was somehow standing in the way of Gaila and Scotty. She’d never shown a bit of interest in Jim, joining in with Nyota’s kindhearted teasing and laughing and chatting with Jim like all the others. She sure seemed to be interested in Scotty now though, judging from how close they were snuggled together, Gaila nearly sprawled on Scotty’s lap. He and Jim sat with at least a foot and half of space between them. Leo didn’t need any further temptation tonight.

“I don’t go to school with them. I’m at Mountain View and they are both at Riverside High.” Gaila answered. “I met Jim two years ago and…we dated for a while.” Scotty scowled and Leo fought to keep his features even. _Why on earth would he be jealous of Jim’s love life?_

“But then we decided we’d be better friends.” Jim added quickly and glanced at Scotty. The two old friends had some sort of wordless exchange and a wide grin burst over Scotty’s face. 

After their pizza arrived, they ate slices sitting together companionably on the floor, Jim and Scotty entertaining them with tales of their more outrageous exploits. “The pranks we’ve done…”

“No wonder you’re such good friends with Judge Pike. You’re a menace.” Leo laughed as he licked pizza sauce off his lower lip. Jim looked quickly away. 

Scotty yawned and Gaila dropped her head back on to the bunk. Leo checked his phone. He realized he hadn’t checked it once since they’d been at the mall. Still no word from Joce. Maybe he just wasn’t that invested any more. If so, he knew why as he glanced at Jim. _Maybe after the holidays…and he was home from Paris…maybe then…._

Then he noticed the time. It was past two thirty. “Don’t ya’ll need to be in before curfew? Want me to drive you home?”

“The accent comes out when you’re tired, huh?” Jim said, with a soft smile. “None of us has a curfew. Could we all just crash here?”

Leo blinked and then shrugged. Scotty and Gaila scrambled into the far bunk, snuggling down, whispering together softly. Leo and Jim tidied up the pizza boxes and killed the lights. Jim said, “I’ll sleep on the floor.”

Leo rolled his eyes and climbed into his bunk, pressing against the wall. “Get up here kid. And don’t hog the blankets.” Jim scrambled into bed with him, his warmth pressing against his front as he wiggled into position. Before his traitorous body could respond, Leo flipped over to face the wall.

_It’s just because you miss Joce. That’s why you’re reacting to Jim so strongly._ Leo pushed away the thought of that all too brief party kiss before he made the situation even more awkward and fought to ignore the soft kissing sounds from the far bunk. If he let himself think of kissing Jim again, he’d cave and…

“I’m still not sleepy. Tell me a bedtime story.” Jim whispered. 

“Once upon a time, this college kid suffocated his friend because he kept talking and wouldn’t let him sleep. His ghost haunted the dorm forever more, asking silly trivia questions and teachin’ people organic chemistry.”

“I’m your friend?” Leo scowled at the wall and flipped over to face Jim. Jim lay on his side, facing Leo, his head propped on his arm, grinning down at him in the dim light of the room. 

“I guess so. Did you want to exchange friendship bracelets or…” 

Together, they shifted to be more comfortable in the tiny bed. Their knees bumped and Jim snuggled closer, causing sparks of awareness to dance over Leo’s skin. “Don’t want to fall off the bed.” 

Leo threw an arm over his waist. “I got you.”

It wasn’t cuddling if he was just helping to keep his friend on the bed. When Jim threw his arm over Leo’s hip, Leo felt the gentle touch all the way through his body. Looked like he wouldn’t be sleeping anytime soon. From the far bunk, the soft kissing sounds subsided and Scotty and Gaila’s breathing evened out. Leo thanked God for small favors. 

“Tell me about growing up in Georgia.” 

“What do you want to know?” Leo shrugged but the action just served to shift them ever so slightly closer on the bed. He resolved not to move again. 

“Do you have brothers and sisters?” Leo shook his head and whispered, “You?”

“Sam, an older brother. He left about six years ago now and haven’t heard from him since.” Jim shrugged. “My dad died the day I was born and my mom…isn’t around much. What about your parents?” 

“They met when he was doing his surgical residency. She was his nurse until I arrived. My mom and dad are still married, living on the family horse farm. Daddy’s hobby is raisin’ horses. Maybe one day, one of them will make it to the Derby.” 

“Do you ride?” 

“I think my daddy had me on a horse before I could walk.”

“It sounds like you’re pretty close to your parents.” 

“Guess so. I had a fight with my daddy the day I became an elf.” Leo sighed. He hadn’t spoken to his father since, though his Mama still called every few days. He’d never gone so long without talking to his father.

“Why? He didn’t want you to work? Afraid you’d mess up your grades?”

“No, doesn’t want me to go to Paris. They’re pretty upset about me not being home for Christmas.”

“They’ll miss you.” Leo shrugged, knowing it was true and not wanting to admit he’d miss them too. “And have they met the amazing Jocelyn?”

Leo bit his lip. “When they were here in the spring…”

“And do they think she’s as amazing as you do?”

“Mama doesn’t like her. She didn’t say it but she was just a bit cooler toward her than I expected. Daddy says…I could do better.”

“Well, I agree with your dad there.” Jim’s eyes met his in the dim half-light of the room, the only illumination coming from Leo’s bedside alarm and the crescent moon outside. “Have you heard from her recently?”

“A few texts. She’s really busy too…”

“Long way to fly over a few texts. You must really love her.”

Leo started to agree. He’d thought he had. And he didn’t consider himself a fickle person but, now that he hadn’t seen her for a while, her memory seemed to be fading under the intensity of Jim at his side. “She’s my first girlfriend.”

_Why had he said that?_ It was far too easy to confide in Jim and, here in the shadowy dark of his dorm room, laying close on the bed, he felt like he could whisper all his secrets to him and would if he wasn’t careful. 

“You really okay with Scotty and Gaila?” Leo asked to change the subject.

“Yeah. I dated Gaila before I realized…”

“Realized what?”

“That I’m into guys.” 

“My first kiss was from a guy.” Leo confided. _Dear God, what was wrong with him? Next thing, he’d be blurting out his inconvenient crush to Jim._

“Really?” Jim shifted a tiny bit closer. “That sounds like an interesting story.”

“Not really. Billy was my lab partner. We dated for two brief weeks of stolen kisses in the chem lab at school. Then he graduated and that was that.”

“True love.” Jim laughed and Leo shrugged. “How old were you?”

“Sixteen.” Jim smiled. “I’m sure you were eight.”

“Six, actually. My kindergarten girlfriend.” Leo rolled his eyes and they smiled at each other. Jim’s gaze dropped to Leo’s mouth and back up again. Leo sucked in a sharp breath, surprised at how badly he wanted Jim to kiss him again, not in the context of a stupid game, but because he wanted Leo, just as much as Leo ached for him. Leo pretended to yawn and flipped over abruptly before he gave in and claimed that plush mouth. 

“Sorry, kid, I’m fading fast. Better get some sleep. Good night.” Leo said in a rush, his heart tripping in his chest as awareness spiraled through him. 

“Good night, Bones.” Jim whispered and Leo heard the smile in his voice. Eventually, his breathing evened out though dawn lightened the sky before Leo managed to sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning, Leo woke with his arms full of Jim. In the night, he’d rolled onto his back, propped half against the wall. Jim lay against his chest, his head over his heartbeat and his arm over Leo’s waist, their legs tangled together. The position should have been uncomfortable in the tiny twin bunk but instead felt comfortable and secure. When he’d shared a bed with Joce, he’d ended up curled around her or pushed to the side rather than entwined so naturally. Leo opened his eyes, surprised at how bright the light was, and fumbled for his phone.

“It’s nearly 11:30. Jim, wake up! We have to be on shift in half an hour.” Jim raised his head to smile lazily down at Leo. Before he could pull him close for a kiss, Leo pushed him away and crawled over him. Scotty sat up and shook Gaila who blinked awake.

“How did this happen? I got up at 8 to take a leak and now it’s three hours later. I’m gonna be late for my shift at Burger Heaven.” Scotty fumbled for his shoes and cracked his head against Leo’s in the tiny dorm room.

They scrambled to get ready to go and dashed for Leo’s car. Though it was normally a twenty minute drive to the mall, Leo made it in ten and they rushed to their places. In minutes, Jim and Leo changed in the tiny gingerbread house, their backs to each other.

“I was going to ask you for pancakes this morning.” Jim smiled at him. “Thanks for letting us sleep over last night.”

“No problem.” Leo blushed, trying to forget he’d spent the night in Jim’s arms. Jim winked and dashed back out to the queue, straightening his hat as he went. Leo raked his hands through his messy hair, trying to find his elf hat in the mess of clothes they’d left scattered around the gingerbread house. 

“Bones, come on! I need you.” Jim called from outside and Leo tucked his still quiet phone into his pocket and headed out to be an elf.

* * *

“So, did you have fun at the party?” Nyota asked Leo as he grabbed his backpack from behind the counter for his lunch break. Jim headed upstairs to grab burgers for them.

“Must have missed seeing you and Spock there.” 

“We haven’t had time alone for a while.” Nyota shrugged and flushed prettily. He could not imagine a less likely couple, except possibly Jim and himself. “How did your first date with Jim go?”

“I have a girlfriend. Her name is Joce.” Leo said, trying not to think how happy he’d felt waking in Jim’s arms that morning.

“You also have a boyfriend. His name is Jim and he’s gorgeous.”

“It’s not like that. The kid follows me around like a duckling…”

“Please, Leo. Spare me.” Ny rolled her eyes. “You’re nuts about him.”

“And Jim is nuts about you.” Gaila chimed in.

“He is? I mean, I am not.” The girls laughed and shook their heads as Leo blushed from their teasing. 

“You all are adorable together. Ny, did I tell you about spin the bottle?”

“It’s just a stupid game, Gaila. And why don’t you tell her about you and Scotty?” Leo headed up to Burger Heaven for his break, whistling. Scotty and Jim were having a low conversation at the front registers when Leo walked up behind Jim.

“If you don’t get the power back on, Jimbo, you’ve no heat. And the temperature is due to drop tonight.”

“Frank’s still no where to be found so…” Jim shrugged. “I’ve got extra blankets.”

“Our house is overflowing with all my cousins here from Scotland or I’d let you stay with me…

“It’s cool, Scotty. I’ll be fine.” 

“Jim. Come stay at the dorm with me.” Leo put his hand on his shoulder and Jim turned to met his eyes. “Couldn’t help but overhear, man. Stay with me for tonight, ok?”

“Okay.” 

* * *

They grabbed a late dinner at one of the chain restaurants on the perimeter of the mall before heading back to Leo’s dorm. As they walked into the room, Jim pressed Leo against the door and crowded close, his delicious warmth washing over Leo’s front. This close, Leo saw only the endless expanse of his blue eyes before he pushed him away.

“You don’t have to do this. You don’t owe me anything, kid. You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like.

“I’m not kissing you because I owe you something or because of some stupid game.” Jim’s blue eyes locked on Leo’s face as he pulled Leo’s hips flush against his, his warm fingers digging into his hips. “I’m kissing you because I want to…I want you…” 

Jim pulled him close, his lush lips brushing over Leo’s mouth, capturing his lower lip, his tongue flicking and teasing, his breath hot and sweet. And Leo wavered. Though he knew it was selfish, knew he shouldn’t, knew he should wait until he was free of Joce before starting something with Jim, he pulled Jim flush against him, wrapping his arms around him, pulling him closer, and kissed him back. Jim slid his palm up his cheek, wrapping his warm hand over his neck and running his fingers up into Leo’s hair as they pressed together from shoulder to waist. He wanted this, wanted Jim in his arms, kissing him like he was as starved for the taste of him as he was for Jim. He gave himself just a moment to indulge, to give himself what he desperately wanted most for Christmas.

Leo gripped Jim’s shoulders and pushed him gently away, straightening his arms when Jim reached for him again. Jim’s bright hair stood in tufts over his head from Leo’s fingers, his plush lips swollen, pink and shiny. As Leo watched, Jim’s pink tongue lapped at his lower lip as though seeking the taste of Leo. Slowly, Jim opened his amazing eyes, the black pupil eclipsing the cerulean. Leo nearly whimpered from the desire he saw reflected there and shut his eyes against the stirring sight of a kiss-mussed Jim. His hold on his self-control was fragile enough already.

“We need to stop.” Leo said, his voice low and breathless. “I’m taken.”

“Not by me.” Jim grinned at him. “Should I tell you what I’ll do to you when I take you to bed?”

“Jim, listen…I have a girlfriend. And I’m not the type to cheat, no matter how attracted I may be to you. And…” Leo rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “You’re still in high school and…”

“I’m six and a half months younger than you, college guy.” Jim rolled his eyes. “I’m far from a blushing virgin. I think I can keep up with you.”

“I am.” Leo flushed but opened his eyes and met Jim’s gaze.

“You are what?” 

“A virgin.”

“Bullshit.” Leo cocked his head at him and raised his eyebrow. “What the hell is wrong with that girlfriend of yours?”

“She wants to wait and…” Leo shrugged. Joce and Paris seemed very far away from his tiny dorm room and those incredible blue eyes. 

“Let me get this straight. You’ve been with this girl for how long…”

“Almost a year and a half.”

“And you haven’t slept together yet?”

“That’s right.” Leo nodded. 

“The girl must be mad. I wouldn’t have made it through the first date before jumping you. You’re so gorgeous and sexy.” Jim rubbed his fingers through his hair. “Did you…I mean…do anything?”

“A gentleman never kisses and tells.” Leo folded his arms over his chest. “And you’ll notice this is me not asking about your past experience level.”

“I’ll try anything once.” Jim shrugged. “And pretty much have.”

Leo shook his head. “We should not even be having this conversation. I’m going to bed.”

“Great. I’ll join you.” Leo turned and put a hand on Jim’s broad chest. 

“You can sleep over there.” He pointed to Gary’s bed. “I changed the sheets for you this morning.”

They got into the beds, Jim shifting around and sighing dramatically. Leo tried to ignore how cold the sheets were and the scent of Jim on his pillow. He stared at the ceiling before checking his phone once again. There was a text with a single photo attached—a selfie of Joce kissing a boy with messy blonde curls, the Eiffel Tower clearly visible behind them. 

He stared at the photo, knowing that he should feel hurt. And maybe a tiny part of him did. But, he smiled at the phone and texted a message to her to call him. He found himself thinking about how much Joce and this mystery guy’s kiss looked very like the passionate, heated embrace he’d just shared with Jim. Maybe he’d be free to take what he really wanted for Christmas instead…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The line ‘The girl must me mad.” is, of course, from the song Agony from Into the Woods.


	10. Chapter 10

“So, last day in Santa’s Village, huh?” On the morning of Christmas Eve Eve, Jim showered and sat on Gary’s bed, wearing clothes he’d borrowed from Leo. Leo had no idea why he looked even sexier than usual, with his finger-combed damp hair, dressed in a ratty old Peachtree High t-shirt and his jeans. Leo continued packing, as he had to leave for the airport directly after his shift. 

“Yep, hanging up the tights.” Leo answered, folding t-shirts and trying not to look at Jim so he wouldn’t be tempted to touch him. 

“I can’t believe you’re leaving me alone there on Christmas Eve. What time is your flight?” 

“Eight tonight.”

“You must be really excited to see Jennifer.” Bones shrugged. He didn’t want to go to Paris. He wanted to spend Christmas with Jim. _How had he fallen so far and so fast for his handsome friend?_ All he could think of was the taste of Jim as he’d kissed him, feeling his warmth slotting against him, how it felt right and real and true in a way that Joce never had. He couldn’t kid himself any longer. He wanted Jim and only Jim but in order to do that, he needed to be free of Joce first. Both Jim and Joce deserved that much respect from him.

“What are you doing for Christmas, kid?” 

“Same thing as every year. Nothing.” Jim shrugged. He hated the thought of his happy-go-lucky Jim being alone on Christmas. “Probably hang with Scotty in the afternoon.” 

“You’ll be okay staying there, with Scotty, right?”

“I’ll be fine, Bones. Don’t worry about me.”

“Okay. So, after I get back…do you want to catch a movie or something?” Leo glanced over his shoulder at him. Jim smiled lazily at him and Leo’s heart did a slow roll in his chest. He fisted his t-shirt to keep from grabbing Jim and kissing that smug, knowing smirk right off his gorgeous face.

“Sure, Bones. It’s a date.” And it would be because, no matter what, Leo was coming home free to be with Jim, where his heart really belonged.

That day, they were so busy, they had to take their breaks in shifts and even Jim couldn’t keep up his steady stream of chatter with so many screaming little ones desperate to see Santa. Jim was working a double so, when Leo got off at five, all he had time for was a quick wave farewell. 

“Jim, give me your cell contact info.”

“I don’t have a cell phone. If you need to reach me, call Scotty. Have fun in Paris. You go. Be safe.” Jim shook his hand quickly. Leo wanted desperately to sweep him into his arms and kiss him. Instead, he turned away. Even though he didn’t really have time before his flight, Leo dashed up to Burger Heaven.

“Hi, Scotty. I need your contact info.”

The Scottish kid crossed his arms over his chest and glared at him, the fiercest angel Leo’d ever seen. “And why should I give you that?”

“Jim said…”

“Jimbo deserves better than to be your second choice.” 

“He’s not my second choice. He’s perfect but…Scotty, I have a girlfriend. I need to break it off with her before…”

“You’re going to fly eleven hours to break up with someone? Leave Jim alone on Christmas? They have phones in Paris, don’t they?”

“Joce deserves more than that.”

“Does she? She’s left you without a word for weeks and you’re working your arse off as an elf and…” Scotty grabbed his phone out of his hand and thumbed open a text. He stared down at the picture and looked back up at Leo, his eyebrows raised. “What’s this then?”

“I don’t even care. I just don’t want to start something with Jim before I’m free. He deserves better than that.” Scotty looked up at him and smiled. 

“Aye, he does. And if you break his heart, I’ll have your balls for my sporran.”

“Deal. Same for Gaila, okay?” 

“Fair enough, lad. Oh, and I have a confession. She may have sent you that picture because I sent her this one.” Scotty showed him a picture of him and Jim curled together, sleeping in each other’s arms.

“Scotty!”

“I figured you might need some help. Just like now.” Scotty held out out the phone and Leo saw the call connected to Joce. He took the phone and, swallowing hard, and with a glare for Scotty, held the phone to his ear.

“Joce?” 

* * *

“You’re the grumpiest elf I’ve ever seen.” Leo said, as he took his place next to a very morose and sullen Jim on Christmas Eve morning.

“Bones!” Jim whirled around, his jaw hanging open. “Why aren’t you in France, you know, brie and berets and all that…”

“Turns out I prefer Santa, candy canes, and a certain elf.” Jim smiled that mega-watt smile, brighter than the lights on the Christmas tree. Leo felt an answering grin on his own face. “I couldn’t just leave you here, looking all pathetic. I figure we gotta get Santa off in style.”

“I’m so glad to see you, man.” Jim’s blue eyes glowed as he smiled at him.

“How could I miss Christmas Eve? One more day…and then…I thought…maybe you’d come home to Georgia with me? I traded in my tickets to Paris to get us two tickets on the red-eye. I think my parents might like to meet you. I mean, if you want to.”

“What about Joce?”

“I hope she’ll be very happy with Henri.” Leo leaned down and whispered near Jim’s ear. “As happy as I am with you.” He squeezed Jim’s hand and stepped back, mindful of the throng of last minute photo seekers in the queue.

Once again, they were swamped all day but by six o’clock, the mall cleared out. They changed back into street clothes and sat inside the gingerbread house, holding hands and smiling goofily at each other. Their flight wasn’t until just before midnight so they had time to just be together before leaving.

“Are you sad about missing out on Christmas in Paris?” 

“I’ll go someday. This guy I know speaks flawless French.”

Jim bit his lip and ducked his chin. “Maybe next year.” 

“Maybe.” And now that he was finally free to do so, he leaned over and cupped Jim’s cheek, tilting his face up. This close, Jim’s eyes were a mosaic of blue and black, like the sky at sunset. The faux stained glass windows washed over Jim’s handsome face in a rainbow of color before Leo captured that plush, sinful mouth that had haunted his dreams for weeks in a deep, passionate kiss. 

Leo let his eyes fall closed as he deepened the kiss, swiping his tongue over Jim’s lower lip, dragging a low moan from the younger man. Jim clutched at his shoulders, pulling him close, smiling against his mouth. Jim broke the kiss, brushing his lips over Leo’s chin as he twined his fingers in his hair, sucking on his neck. Leo shivered as they settled on their sides, twined together on the floor, cushioned by their jackets. Jim grabbed his hips, grinding them together, sending sparks of awareness through Leo. He raised his head to look at Jim, still stunned that he’d gotten everything he’d wanted all at once.

“Merry Christmas, darlin.’” Leo whispered.

“Not yet, but it will be, Bones.” Jim pulled him down for another deep, drugging kiss and ensured it was a very Merry Christmas for both of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading my little Christmas drabble. I do have some ideas to continue in this “Starfleet University” verse. Would you all be interested in reading more about their adventures or are you content to leave it here? Let me know!
> 
> My other Christmas story, _Captain Christmas and the Real McCoy_ also finishes posting today. 
> 
> I'm also currently posting _Dark Side of the Moon_ so you may want to check that out too.
> 
> I have three stories to post in the new year.
> 
> _Never Have I Ever_ is an Academy Era drinking game story featuring a boy!virgin Bones.
> 
> _Something to Talk About_ is a post Narada story featuring our boys having to fake a relationship for Starfleet PR. That will start posting on New Year's Day. 
> 
> And _Forget Me Not_ is a post STID story featuring an amnesiac Bones.
> 
> Look for those to start posting in January 2015.
> 
> Please feel free to visit me at my Tumblr at:
> 
> http://corrie71.tumblr.com
> 
> or at my personal website at :
> 
> http://courtney-hunt.com
> 
> Thank you so much for all your kudos, comments, and feedback. I love hearing from my readers. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season filled with family, friends, and McKirk kisses. All the best to you in 2015.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, I'm eternally grateful to my brainstorming buddy and beta extraordinare, WeWillSpockYou, who encouraged me to write this and helped figure out the plot points along the way. Some of the lines are directly out of our ongoing Skype chats. It was supposed to be a little drabble and well....the plot tribbles just keep multiplying. 
> 
> Though I normally try to have a story complete before I post, if I waited to finish this one, it'd post next Christmas. My plan is to have the story conclude on Christmas Eve. Fingers crossed! 
> 
> And just for fun, these are the two pics I used as inspiration for my young McKirk:
> 
> Young Bones:  
> http://corrie71.tumblr.com/post/104411591359/be-thou-brave-i-could-put-that-wall-to-good-use
> 
> Young Jim:  
> http://corrie71.tumblr.com/post/104683543444/i-love-this-pic-it-reminds-me-of-a-young-jim


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